The present invention relates to a package for ingredients and more particularly but not exclusively to a package for ingredients to be dispensed into a liquid.
It is often desirable for manufactures to package ingredients in premeasured quantities for subsequent use in mixing a liquid by a consumer. Some examples of "convenience" food packaging are well known. For example tea bags are used in domestic situations to provide an individual cup of tea as well as pots of tea. Restaurants and cafes also supply individual cups of tea by immersing a tea bag in a cup of hot water and leaving the bag in place for the consumer to remove.
Once the tea bag is removed the consumer is faced with the problem of disposal, either placing the teabag in the saucer or in an ashtray or other receptacle giving an untidy appearance. Such problems are rarely encountered with other drinks such as coffee where "instant" granules or powder are used. However, unlike coffee, tea contains very few soluble solids. Consequently "instant" tea requires "bulking" with other solids to prevent an excess being mixed in water giving an unacceptable strength.
Instant tea if not so bulked requires accurate dispensing to avoid such difficulties.
Industries other than the food industry face similar problems. For example in the paint industry it is possible to supply a base colour paint, usually white, to which a colouring pigment is added prior to use. For consistency of colour it is usual for such systems to be employed by retailers who use complex pigment dispensing systems to add pigments to the base paint to meet customers requirements.
It is not usually convenient for the ultimate consumer to be supplied with base paint and pigment for self mixing since such a consumer would be unlikely to obtain the required colour consistency.
Other industries which supply the consumer with for example chemicals such as weedkillers, fertilisers and the like also need to provide premeasured quantities of ingredients for subsequent mixing.
It is one object of the present invention to provide a package for ingredients capable of use in supplying premeasured quantities of such ingredients and adapted to facilitate distribution and dispersion of the ingredients.